These links can help you research the influence of business (aka big business, corporations, big corporations) on government, the media, and other areas of life. This information is often difficult to find as this kind of influence tends to be exerted through a wide variety of means such as campaign donations, pseudo-grassroots organizations, PR and advertising campaigns, lobbying, professional organizations, research funding (or obstruction thereof), and more.

While every effort has been made to link to sites that present accurate information, it's important to view everything you find with a grain of salt. Interaction between a corporate representative and a government official doesn't necessarily mean explicit corruption. Political scientists and other academics have debated the extent, forms, and impact of corporate influence for decades. These complex issues deserve careful consideration from the people most interested in building a more just world - activists, researchers, and other radicals. Activists and independent journalists can always post their questions on the main page to get further assistance with making the most of these resources.

For now, this guide will focus most of its efforts on US politics - but that can change if you contribute international resources (domestic ones are, of course, also welcome)!

Takoma Park MD is a nuclear free zone, by ordinance. I'm a member of the NFTPC committee that reports on these issues to the city council. The text of the ordinance calls (in part) for city contracts to be ineligible if made with nuclear weapon manufacturers. [1]

Until ca. 2002, the city relied on an apparently-now-defunct nonprofit in Baltimore called "Nuclear Free America" for a publication called "Prime Nuclear Weapons Contractors: U.S. Departments of Defense and Energy Broad Nuclear Definition - Fiscal Year 2002 With Parent Company/Prime Contractor Cross References." [2] The document has not been released in some time, and tracking down the folks responsible has not been all that useful (although we know who they are and have been in contact). [3]

So here's the question: are there publicly-available resources for researching, on a case-by-case basis, the ties of corporations to manufacture and maintenance of nuclear weaponry? Seems like a good business library should provide the relevant information. We'd want to track known subsidiaries to parent companies, and cross-reference that list to a list of companies known to be in the business of contracting with DOD and DOE on nuclear weapons-related work. For example, a question has come up about "3M."

For just a little bit more about NFTPC you can check out our new-and-not-very-active-yet blog. [4]

[1] Section 14.04.060. See: http://takomaparkmd.gov/code/html/_DATA/TITLE14/Chapter_14_04_NUCLEAR_FREE_ZON.html
[2] For the front matter from the most recent publication, see: http://www.takomaparkmd.gov/clerk/agenda/items/2005/022805-4a.pdf
[3] Richard Torgerson is current, or perhaps immediate-past president of NFA. See his bio here: http://www.progressive-asset.com/who/team.html
[4] http://nftpc.blogspot.com/